Within the last decade, Asian Americans have experienced a 5% increase in homeownership rate — the largest increase of any race — according to a recent report by the National Association of Realtors (NAR). The Asian population is also the second-fastest growing demographic in the U.S., and the Census Bureau projects it to double by 2060.
But not every city in the U.S. is seeing an increase in Asian American homeowners. And in some cities, the Asian American homeownership rate falls significantly behind.
In celebration and recognition of Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Heritage Month, Today’s Homeowner analyzed geographic differences in Asian American homeownership rates. We used data from the Census Bureau to compare the number of Asian American homeowners to the total number of Asian American households for the 50 largest U.S. cities.
As the Census does not report estimates on the number of Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islanders homeowners for many large cities, our reporting at the city level focuses on Asian American homeownership. National figures are reported for overall AAPI homeownership rates, however. For more details on our sources, check out the Methodology section below.
Key Findings
AAPI homeownership recently hit a record high at 61.6%, rebounding from a pandemic slowdown.
Nationally, AAPI homeownership is slightly lower than the homeownership rate across all demographics (66.0%) and nearly 13% lower than the white homeowner rate (74.4%).
The Asian American homeownership rate is highest in Virginia Beach, Virginia (79.6%) and lowest in Baltimore, Maryland (28.1%).
Single women are driving an uptick in AAPI homebuying, making up 24% of all AAPI buyers.
Asian American Homeownership by City
Asian American homeownership rates differ widely across the nation. Interestingly, the cities with the highest and lowest number of Asian homeowners are in the mid-Atlantic region — Virginia Beach, Virginia, the highest, and Baltimore, Maryland, the lowest.
Cities With the Highest Asian American Homeownership Rates
The Asian American homeownership rate exceeds 70% in seven cities, meaning less than three in 10 Asian American households rent in those cities. Virginia Beach, Virginia, leads with the highest Asian American homeownership rate at 79.6%, followed by Arlington, Texas (76.6%) and Oklahoma City, Oklahoma (76.0%).
The other four cities span geographic regions. Two are located in the West (Colorado Springs, Colorado and Mesa, Arizona), one in the Midwest (Indianapolis, Indiana) and one in the South (Jacksonville, Florida).
Below are the top 10 cities for Asian American homeownership rates:
- Virginia Beach, VA: 79.6%
- Arlington, TX: 76.6%
- Oklahoma City, OK: 76.0%
- Colorado Springs, CO: 75.1%
- Mesa, AZ: 72.3%
- Indianapolis, IN: 71.5%
- Jacksonville, FL: 71.4%
- Bakersfield, CA: 69.9%
- Wichita, KS: 65.3%
- Las Vegas, NV: 64.1%
Cities With the Lowest Asian American Homeownership Rates
Though Asian American homeownership is strong in many large cities, it falls behind in others. Less than four in 10 Asian American households own their homes in seven cities. The rate is lowest in Baltimore, Maryland (28.1%), followed by Boston, Massachusetts (30.3%).
Less than an hour south of Baltimore, the nation’s capital — Washington, D.C. — also has a low Asian American homeownership rate. 2021 Census Bureau data shows that there are only about 5,600 Asian American homeowners in the city compared to the more than 15,100 Asian American households.
The table below shows the Asian American homeownership rates across all 50 cities in our study.
Asian American Homeownership Outpaces Overall Rates in 32 Cities
Beyond considering the Asian American homeownership rate, we compared how it relates to the overall homeownership rate in each city. In 32 of the 50 largest cities, Asian Americans are more likely to be homeowners than the average resident. And in 11 cities, the Asian American homeownership rate exceeds the overall homeownership rate by a margin of more than 10%.
The difference in rates is largest in Arlington, Texas, where the Asian American homeownership rate stands at 76.6% relative to the overall homeownership rate of 53.7%. This is a difference of nearly 23%.
In some cities, the Asian American homeownership rate is significantly lower than the overall one, however. In Baltimore, Maryland, the Asian American homeownership rate is 20.4% lower than the overall rate (28.1% vs. 48.5%). Tucson, Arizona, and Omaha, Nebraska, follow with spreads of -16.3% and -11.8%, respectively.
Asian American Homeownership Is Strong in the Largest U.S. Cities
Asian American homeownership is higher than overall homeownership in many of the largest U.S. cities, which generally have higher living costs. For example, in New York and Los Angeles — the two largest cities — Asian American homeownership rates are 11.9% and 2.8% higher than the city averages, respectively.
There are three notable exceptions across the 10 largest U.S. cities. In Phoenix, Arizona, the Asian American homeownership rate is 4.4% lower than the city average (54.4% vs 58.8%). The same is true in two Texas cities: San Antonio and Dallas. In San Antonio, the Asian American homeownership rate is 1.7% lower than the overall average homeownership rate, while in Dallas, it is significantly wider, at 8.2%.
Post-Pandemic AAPI Homeownership Hits Record High
While city-specific data is only available through 2021, more recent national data from the St. Louis Federal Reserve Bank and Realtor.com shows a promising picture of AAPI homeownership in recent months.
Recent reports show that AAPI homeownership reached 61.9% in the fourth quarter of 2022 — the highest since it began tracking the group at the start of 2016. That cut in half the gap between AAPI homeowners and the overall rate during that period.
Though AAPI homebuyers pulled back during the pandemic, homeownership rates rebounded at a greater rate than any other demographic in 2022. Moreover, data from the NAR’s “2023 Snapshot of Race and Home Buying in America Report” finds that over the past decade, AAPI households had the biggest homeownership rate gains of any racial group and faster than the overall household gains, driving the AAPI rate to record highs in 2022.
That was in the face of the worst housing affordability conditions on record. In 2022, homebuyers faced a harsh combination, with mortgage rates more than doubling from the 2021 lows while home prices soared.
Single Women Drive Uptick in AAPI Homeownership Rates
The characteristics of Asian American home buyers differ from other demographics, with single women driving the group’s home-buying trend. NAR found that in 2022, single AAPI women made up 24% of AAPI buyers, while single men made up only 4%.
The full breakdown of AAPI buyers is below:
- Married couples: 58%
- Single women: 24%
- Single men: 4%
- Unmarried couples: 12%
- Other: 2%
This concentration of single women homebuyers is the second-highest demographic, following only Black homebuyers, where single women made up 27% of buyers.
Additionally, the median age of AAPI home buyers was just 41 (younger than any other racial group), with a median household income of $110,000, which was the second-highest demographic.
Continued Challenges for AAPI Households
While AAPI households have quickly grown in markets across the country, the gains among AAPI buyers on a national level may be more muted going forward.
“Asian homeowners are more squeezed than their white counterparts,” explains Nadia Evangelou, Senior Economist and Director of Real Estate Research for NAR.
Evangelou continues, “26% of Asian homeowners are cost-burdened — spend more than 30% of their income on housing — compared to 20% of white homeowners. Although Asian homeowners earn a higher income than white owners, Asian owners tend to live in high-cost areas where housing is more expensive.”
Homeownership costs often come with things outside of a mortgage as well. Additional costs may include property taxes, homeowners' insurance, and home warranty protection.
Methodology
To rank the cities with the highest Asian American homeownership rates, Today’s Homeowner looked at data for the 50 largest U.S. cities. We compared two metrics:
- Number of Asian American homeowners. Data comes from the Census Bureau’s 2021 1-year American Community Survey.
- Number of Asian American households. This includes both homeowners and renters. Data comes from the Census Bureau’s 2021 1-year American Community Survey.
We divided the number of Asian American homeowners by the number of Asian American households to calculate the homeownership rate. To find the overall homeownership rate, we similarly compared the number of homeowners to the total number of households, including both homeowners and renters.
As previously noted, data on Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islanders homeowners was unavailable for many cities. Specifically, in 39 of the 50 largest U.S. cities, the Census Bureau did not report 2021 estimates on the number of Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islanders homeowners.
Questions about our study or want to speak with an expert? Contact media@todayshomeowner.org.
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We encourage journalists and reporters to share our findings on Asian American homeownership. If you choose to do so, please link back to our original story to give us proper credit for our research.
